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4 Just sait * September U 2QQQ
Right triangle
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go to www.DickHannah.com
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email Honda.sales@DickHannah.com
3321 NE Auto Mall Drive
Vancouver, WA 9 8683
John Paul
Don’t just enjoy the view. Own it.
R esort livin g at an a ffo rd a b le p rice.
To
th e E d ito r :
List year at this time, I wrote a letter to the
editor addressing the pending Pearl District and
brewery redevelopm ent and what possible
impact it would have on the Stark Street bar dis­
trict. I could not have been more pleased to see
your excellent, in-depth article about the situa­
tion [“The Burnside Triangle,” Aug. 18].
I think that the area is at a crossroads and
that something definitely will happen. W hether
the outcome is amenable to the gay bar situation
remains to be scene.
One point of the article particularly con­
cerned me. In my 1999 letter, I expressed con­
cern about the lack of money gay business own­
ers are investing in the neighborhood.
Your article makes a number of references to
gay business owners not attending the comm u­
nity meetings regarding the Burnside Triangle
nor returning calls from Just Out. If we could
gauge the outcome o f the gay district by past and
present actions, it would appear its days indeed
are numbered.
Common Amenities include:
D avid M eltzer
Indoor and outdoor pools
Marina slips available
Elevator-served buildings
Underground parking
Walking path along river and bay
Portland
YWCA takes
step backward
Spacious condominiums with specti
ictacular
views of Columbia River, Mt. Hood,
and Mt. St. Helens.
COLUMBIA
POINT
WEST
Open Daily 11AM to 6PM
excluding Wednesday
233 N Hayden Bay Dr.
503-735-4884
www.columbiapoint.com
à
Marketed By:
The Hasson Company
Jeff Burghart, PC
,
Are you a man who has
sex with other men?
Have you had unprotected
sex in the recent past?
Do you have questions or
concerns about sexual safety?
If you answered “yes” to any of the above
and want to talk, CALL Cascade AIDS’s
Project’s Speak To Your Brothers program
223-5907 ext. 233 or Oregon AIDS
Hotline 223-AIDS (local)
1-800-777-AIDS (state)
To
E d ito r :
The Sexual Minority Services Project began
in March 1999 to improve resources for sexual
minority clients of the YW CA of Clark County
in Vancouver, Wash.
During its first year, the program reached
many goals. The most important of these was
the large part the project played in the develop­
ment and presentation of the Diversity Institute,
a public awareness/education workshop promot­
ing ways to interrupt all forms o f oppressive
behavior and language in our community.
The first year was successful because of the
YW CA leadership’s tremendous support. For all
the good work the Y has done against oppression
in all its forms, however, new leadership there
has chosen to narrow the focus of its fight
against oppression toward racism specifically,
claiming that fighting all forms of oppression
dilutes the work against racism.
This shift in policy also forced the elimina­
tion of several resources being provided by the
project; 1 and the other volunteers consider this
a large and unfortunate step backward, incom­
patible with our mission against oppression and
intolerance in all its forms, whether it he against
people of color, sexual minorities, people with
disabilities, etc. When one is oppressed, all suffer.
The project therefore has withdrawn from its
alliance with the YW CA of Clark County, the
Y s Office of Intercultural Affairs and Civil Rights
and its new, and less inclusive, Diversity Institute.
Reorganization efforts are under way. Folks
wanting more information regarding the S exu ­
al Minority Services Project may contact me
by e-mail at LEZephyr42@aol.com.
th e
L lyn Z ephyr
VO LU N TEER S NEEDED
for Gay/Bi Men’s Education and Outreach
Call Dave at ext. 218.
AIDS
ect
Sexual Minority Services Project
of Southwest Washington
Love and pride
To
th e
E ditor :
Many recoil from conflict such as the Ore­
gon Citizens A lliances ballot measures and the
concerns about operational issues of the Pride
Northwest hoard. However, these are opportu­
nities for our community to unite and become
more powerful than before.
The productive spirit and substance of the
Aug. 23 meeting impressed me. Although many
concerns already were addressed in a recent let­
ter to Just Out, I would like to highlight some
possible solutions that were discussed:
• Consult a neutral team o f attorneys regard­
ing what can be done about concerns raised.
• Encourage ousted members to participate
in Pride Northwest as volunteers.
• A ttend next Pride Northwest meeting to
get more information.
• H ave concerned comm unity members
apply to board and change it from the inside.
• Focus on Ballot Measure 9 and axil off
until November.
• Ask hoard not to take sponsorship and get
hack to a comm unity-based event.
• Organize grassroots cam paign to influence
direction o f hoard.
• Summarize this m eeting in an e-mail alert
to concerned com m unity members, generating
wider interest and an action base.
• Ask for an audit of finances.
• Set benchm arks for com m ittee jobs.
• A sk for open meetings, allowing con­
cerned com m unity members to ensure compli­
ance with bylaws.
• Encourage individual community mem­
bers to leave messages for Pride Northwest
expressing concerns and desires.
• Utilize neutral yet mutually respected com­
munity leader as intermediary to get responses to
questions regarding concerns and desires.
• Utilize neutral com m ittee to mediate and
com m unicate with board.
W hat seems clear to me is some avenue of
com m unication needs to be opened between the
board and those it serves. T his conflict has gen­
erated a great deal o f support motivated by gen­
uine love and respect for our diverse community.
The hoard has within its reach a priceless
resource. I strongly urge it to take advantage of this
strife and specifically to offer an invitation to a
neutral committee of concerned community mem­
bers not directly affected by hoard choices of this
past year. I suggest the hoard contact Just Out to
pursue its next steps in resolving this conflict and
taking advantage of the support it has mobilized.
H eather E. F lanagan
Portland
Let’s move forw ard
To
t h e E d it o r :
A suggestion from the Aug. 23 open meeting
about Pride Northwest was to form a group of
positive, constructive intermediaries to explore
the conflict. T hese would he people who can
hold all the players in respect, who are not vest­
ed in either side being proven right or wrong
and who will try to help the parties and the
community m ove forward constructively.
Please call (503) 286-0680 or e-mail me right
away at info@nwhousing.org to participate. We
are interested in a short-term effort only.
G race S ilvia
Pirrtland
ç o r r e c tio il
In the Aug. 18 article “T h e Burnside Trian­
gle," it mistakenly was reported that the Eagle
PDX had lost its lease. Just Out regrets the error.
In fact, Joh n Adam s, owner of the West
Burnside bar and C .C . Slaughter’s in Old Town,
says the Eagle PDX has 15 years remaining on its
lease. He says that he might move the bar at
some point hut that it will continue to operate
at its current location for now.
Adam s wants to wait and see what changes
the Brewery Bkx:k.s developm ent brings to the
area. Since the Crystal Ballroom opened, he
says, parking has become a big problem affecting
business along Stark Street.